Building An Annotated Bibliography

The significance of building an annotated bibliography as part of the research process is seen in the researcher becoming familiar with the content for all that’s been accounted for in more than 60 collected sources. Decisions need to be made and questions begin to surface along with making a record of emerging patterns in the collected data. One example of this is seen in how this writer is being forced to consider what constitutes historical background and what elements of history are relevant to a present-day topic with its application. In other words, why does an ancient document like Meditations hold the interest of the modern reader and what is one to do with it?

“As you get deeper into your project, you may experience moments when everything seems to run together into a hopeless muddle. That usually happens when you accumulate notes faster than you can sort them. Such moments can be stressful, but they can also be a sign that you are on the verge of a new insight or discovery.” (Turabian 2018, 49) Navigating from scholarly academic books and journals through articles and online sources shows this writer how philosophers and leaders alike have handled the material. While academics dig deep into a scientific examination, breaking a thing into parts to understand how it works, practitioners look for ways to put the information to use as a whole. This, by the way, is the goal of the Stoic: daily practice is the philosophy; that is, loving wisdom is doing wisdom.

Writing the annotations helps with pacing note-taking and keeps material fresh in the writer’s mind. One is always mindful of the need to connect the core of ministry leadership to Meditations.

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Turabian, Kate L. 2018. A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations, Ninth Edition: Chicago Style for Students and Researchers. Edited by Wayne C. Booth, Gregory G. Colomb, Joseph M. Williams, Joseph Bizup, William T. FitzGerald, and The University of Chicago Press Editorial Staff. Ninth edition. Chicago ; London: University of Chicago Press.